The Wayward Gifted - Broken Point (25 page)

“No,” Steuart shook his head. “Does he
know that Trista was in an accident?”

“No, I haven’t told him yet. I want to
get Trista well before I tell him.”

Steuart swallowed his cookie, “Why?”

“I don’t want him to know. I want her
fixed before I say anything.”

“Dr. Klesel?” Ceil asked. Ceil turned
and looked at Steuart. Ed quickly sat down.

“The dolls belong to Dr. Klesel.
They’re not ours.”

Ceil turned back towards Sam. Ed turned
and looked at Steuart who put his fingers on Ed’s shoulder. Ed reached up and
held onto Steuart.

Ceil poured more tea. “Sam, I’m sorry
to hear about this. Surely, Dr. Klesel will understand.”

“It’s more than that. I’m worried about
Trista.”

“Worried? In what way?”

“Mr. Felphul told us that you have
dolls. That’s why I’m telling you what happened.”

“He said that one of yours got lost.”
Steuart said.

“You have to understand. You must know
that they’re alive, don’t you?” Sam looked Ceil in the eyes.

“Alive?” Ceil asked. “Of course they’re
real to you. I have no doubt, but...”

Sam cut Ceil off, “I see. Will you show
us your doll?”

“Honey, I’m afraid Mr. Felphul was
mistaken. I don’t have any dolls. I wish that I did. They can be quite
fascinating and wonderful. Would you like another cup of tea?”

“You just poured another cup for all of
us,” Sam looked harshly at Ceil. She wondered if Ceil was being truthful and
remembered how Mr. Felphul suddenly changed his story about Ceil’s dolls.

“Ceil, you have such a beautiful house,”
Sam said. “How long have you lived here?”

“About ten years.”

Ed and Steuart sat straight. Sam saw
tears in Steuart’s eyes.

“Was the tree house here when you moved
in?” Steuart asked.

“No,” Ceil stopped and corrected
herself. “No, I mean yes, it was here when we moved in.”

“We? I thought you live by yourself,”
Steuart questioned.

“Oh, I was just speaking in the third
person. We, as in me, the royal
we
.”

“Ceil, sometimes you’re strange,” Sam
said.

“Do you think so?”

“Yes.”

“I guess we all have our little
quirks.”

Steuart broke into the conversation. “I
do the same thing.
We
should like
another cup of tea, please.”

“We should?” Ceil smiled.

“Yes, we should. Please.”

“Then we shall have it.” Ceil poured another
cup of tea for Steuart, “How is your arm feeling, really?”

“You’ve already asked twice, but since
you asked again, we, are feeling fine, thank you for asking.”

“This is ridiculous,” Sam stood and
walked towards the back door. “You’re...” Sam stopped. She turned around and
gave Ceil a stern look.

“What’s wrong, Sam? Is there something
you want to say?

“You don’t want to let on that you know
anything about the dolls.
Pa my leg again
.”

“I don’t understand the game you’re
playing. You know I’m not good with anagrams.”

Sam let out a deep sigh. She looked at
Steuart and shrugged her shoulders. “It’s time for us to go.”

FOURTEEN

Leaving Ceil’s, Steuart and Sam agreed
that something was odd.

“I think she knows a lot more than she’s
saying,” Steuart said.

“I don’t understand why she won’t tell
us what she knows.”

“Maybe she doesn’t know anything.”

Sam gave her brother a hard look. “You
are kidding me, right?”

“Do you really believe she’s hiding
something?” Steuart stepped into the bike carrier with Ed.

“That’s what it feels like to me. She’s
evasive about too many things.” Sam shrugged her shoulders. “Why would Mr.
Felphul tell me that Ceil has dolls like ours?”

“He backed off,” Steuart said. “He
changed his story.”

“I don’t believe Mr. Felphul either. I
think they both know things that they’re not saying.”

“Sam you are paranoid.”

“No, I’m not.”

“You may be right—or not. I can’t
think of any reason that Ceil wouldn’t tell us the truth about things, especially
if she had information that might be helpful. Maybe that’s it—maybe she
doesn’t know anything.”

“That doesn’t make sense. If she didn’t
have any information that could help us, she could still tell us what she
knows. You weren’t standing there when I was talking with Mr. Felphul. One
minute he told me that Ceil had a doll that was stolen. The next minute he said
he was confusing her with someone else.”

“They’re not bad people. Maybe that’s
exactly what happened.”

“I’m not saying that either of them is
bad, all I’m saying is that I think they have a secret. I think they both may
know something they’re not telling us.”

Ed sat quietly and listened to the
conversation. “Ed, what can you tell us?” Steuart asked.

“Not much.”

“You never tell us much. It’s
frustrating. You were supposed to tell us more about things as soon as we got
your boxes. We’ve been through a lot and still don’t know much more about where
you’re from.”

“It wasn’t my fault that you decided to
take a swan dive onto a giant pile of books.”

“Can you tell us more now? It might
help us help Trista.”

“All you had to do was ask.”

“Really?”

“Yep.”

“Does that mean you’ll tell us anything
we want to know?”

“No. It means that I’ll tell you what I
can.”

“Where’d you come from?” Sam asked.

“Bellamy. Any thoughts? Let’s see how
smart you are."

Steuart and Sam conferred with one
another. Ed refused to give clues.

“I’ve got it,” Steuart shouted. “I know
the answer. Sam does too.”

They shouted the name in unison, “Maybell!”

“Correct. You’re the big winners,
ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding!
You guys are quick.”

“Where’s Bellamy?” Steuart asked.

“Not far,” Ed laughed, opened his arms
and said, “Sam, Steuart, welcome to the wonders of the Anagrammatic Universe.”

Steuart and Sam gasped in unison.

“Anagrammatic Universe,” Steuart
whispered.

“Do a lot of people travel from Maybell
to Bellamy?” Sam asked.

Ed shrugged, “I couldn’t say. Probably
more than you might imagine, but not a high percentage.”

“What does that translate into as far
as numbers?”

“Here we go again.” Ed mumbled to
himself, “They always have the same questions. She wants numbers. He wants to
know who and how many.” He grew serious, “Kids, these are good questions. The
problem is I’m not allowed to say.”

“Not allowed to say? What? Why?”
Steuart demanded. “We’ve answered your questions. We found your boxes.”

“Ed,” Sam asked, “Do you know the
people who travel?”

“I know some of them.”

“Who are they?” Steuart asked.

“I just told you. I’m not at liberty to
tell you.”

“You’re not telling us anything. I
think you’re teasing.”

Ed growled, “I hate this part of the
talk.”

“What do you mean,
the talk
? How often do you do this?” Sam asked.

“It’s how I make my living. This is my
job.”

“Job?”

“Yeah, I work as a guide.”

“What about Trista?” Sam asked. “Do you
and she always work together?”

“Trista isn’t a guide. She’s a student.
She came here for the cultural experience. I’m her guide, too.”

“So, Dolls are place holders?” Steuart
asked.

“Yes and there are defined holding
areas in communities that keep the dolls safe.”

“Dr. Klesel? What does he know?”

Ed shook his head, “Dr. Klesel’s office
is a holding area.”

“What does he know?” Steuart asked.

“It’s unclear.”

“You’re kidding us.”

“No, and if I knew anything more, I’d
still be unable to tell either of you.”

Sam stretched and took a deep breath,
“It’s so secretive. Where did Dr. Klesel get his dolls?”

“The Doll-maker.”

“Is that where you came from?”

Ed nodded, “Dolls come from the
doll-maker.”

“Where’s the doll maker?”

“Where’s God? You might as well answer
that question.”

“When did you arrive?” Steuart asked.

“About a week before we were introduced.”

“You seemed different—not like
you were alive. You didn’t seem real,” Sam said. “Explain, please.”
       

“I can’t.”

Steuart looked at Sam. “This is
frustrating.”

“The absolute most important thing you
need to remember is that this is not an exact science. Also, we occasionally
get surprised.”

“You won’t tell us who travels?” Steuart
asked.

“It’s against the
Code of the Guide
.”

“What?”

“There’s a code we guides live by. I
follow the code. I took an oath. I live under strict orders.”

“From whom?” Sam asked.

Ed shook his head. “Look, I sincerely
apologize for my vagueness. It’s not by choice. I’m bound by my oath. Believe
me, I feel your frustration.”

“Do you?” Sam asked.

Ed nodded. “You can feel confident that
I won’t tell anyone about you.”

“What will you tell us?”

“I’ll tell you everything that’s
allowed—nothing more. That’s how it works.”

Sam let out a huge sigh and walked to
her bike.

“Where are we going now?” Steuart asked
his sister.

“I’m not sure. Let’s bike downtown.
Maybe we can figure things out when we get there.” Sam got on her bike and
began pedaling.

* * *

Sam biked towards town. Steuart and Ed
sat with Sparky and enjoyed the trip. Sam thought about Trista’s accident and
wondered how it all came about.
What was
Mother doing with Trista?
Sam felt angry and sad—she also felt
responsible. “Trista, I’m going to help you get well. You have my promise.”

Snow fell and the temperature dropped as
she continued peddling towards downtown. A small number of people walked in and
out of buildings, some using umbrellas, others wearing hoods or hats. Cars inched
along on the snow-covered roads. A yellow city truck, preparing for icy evening
conditions, dropped salt as it passed the bicycle. The day was becoming one of
those grey, dreary days that Midwesterners often complain about—cold,
slushy, icy, wet, and dull.

The children learned early that
Midwesterners care little for cold or snow. For some, complaining about the
weather seemed to make them feel better. For others, it appeared to be a hobby.
Sam didn’t understand.
It’s snow. It’s
beautiful, wonderful, gorgeous snow
, she thought. She loved the snowy days,
even days like this one. She fantasized about standing in the middle of the
street screaming, “Be thankful for these beautiful days! They are treasures for
you to enjoy.” Sam also realized that one man’s richest blessing is often
little more than another man’s daily complaint. She felt sad and grateful at
the same time. She felt sad for the people who hated the season. She felt
grateful for the ability to recognize and appreciate every day. Then she
wondered,
what do other people see and
appreciate that I miss
?

Sam slowed her bike as she noticed a
little coffee shop diagonally across the street. A heavy velvet curtain was
installed at the entrance for the winter months. The color of ripe, juicy,
raspberries, it was pulled around to keep the cold and wind out of the shop.

“What are you doing?” Steuart asked.
“Why are you stopping?”

Sam pulled up to the curb. “Let’s go in
here. Are you hungry?” she asked. Steuart stepped onto the snowy pavement with Ed.
“Watch your step.” Sam reached to help her brother with his good arm. “I was
thinking we could get a muffin and a cup of tea.”

“Chocolate,” Ed insisted. “Let’s get a
chocolate muffin.”